Understanding vulnerabilities and resilience in circular business ecosystems.

This study investigates the vulnerabilities that emerge in Circular Business Ecosystems (CBE) and their impact on ecosystem resilience. CBEs, characterized by collaborative networks of interdependent actors, are increasingly recognized as strategic approaches for achieving circular value propositions. However, these ecosystems are exposed to perturbations that can undermine their effectiveness and resilience. Drawing on a four-year qualitative, multiple-case study involving 19 firms across two distinct CBEs, this research adopts a vulnerability lens and socioecological and economic perspectives to resilience to explore how vulnerabilities in material flows, actor relationships, and governance structures impact resilience. The findings reveal that perturbations such as material dependency, power imbalances, lack of transparency, and fragmented governance can reduce adaptive capacity, leading to unintended consequences in CBEs. These vulnerabilities (the structural conditions of exposure and sensitivity) undermine flexibility, redundancy, and visibility, constraining the ecosystem's resilience (the ability to adapt, collaborate, innovate, and respond to external shocks). This study contributes to the literature by conceptualizing these vulnerabilities and their interactions with resilience, providing insights for strengthening adaptive capacity and the long-term sustainability of circular ecosystems.